


Shooting Stars and Satellites

by beenicetobees



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Found Family, If you didn't like the finale read this and maybe you'll see some value in it no pressure though, Multi, Post-Series, Thanksgiving, They love each other and support each other, i liked the finale
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-22
Updated: 2020-11-22
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:40:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27662815
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beenicetobees/pseuds/beenicetobees
Summary: Jody's house is full of damn good food, and damn good people. There's nowhere better to spend Thanksgiving.
Relationships: Eileen Leahy/Sam Winchester, Garth Fitzgerald IV/Bess Myers, Kaia Nieves/Claire Novak
Comments: 27
Kudos: 100





	Shooting Stars and Satellites

**Author's Note:**

> Beta read by the lovely Skylar! Thanks so much.

“Dean! Will you please sit still!” 

Sam ran a hand down his exhausted face as his son once again jumped off his chair to go bother the dog, ruining the shirt that Sam had just finished tucking in.

“Why?” Dean asked, pulling on Miracle’s ear. Miracle, to his credit, was being very calm about the whole situation. 

“Because we’re going over to Auntie Jody’s house for Thanksgiving, remember? It’s a special day, so you should wear special clothes.” 

“Why?” Dean asked again. Honestly, the kid had a point. Sam sighed, giving Dean one more once over, before deciding that the shirt was a lost cause and leaving it be. 

“Good question, why don’t you ask Auntie Jody when we get there. Now come here so I can do your hair.” Sam grabbed a comb and got one pull through Dean’s mess of hair before the three year old shrieked and ran from the room. 

“Dean!” Sam chased the boy into the hallway to find him caught in Eileen’s arms, struggling to get free.

“What happened?” she asked, exasperated.

_‘Didn’t want me to brush his hair,’ _Sam signed back. Eileen grinned.__

__“Sounds like somebody else I know,” she replied, giving Sam a knowing look. He rolled his eyes. Eileen let Dean go, silencing him with a look. Their son hung his head and allowed his father to quickly brush through his hair, which turned out to be pointless anyway. At this point they were already running late, so there was a mad dash to get the Winchester Surprise out of the oven and strap Dean into his car seat._ _

__When they arrived, Patience met them in the front yard. She gave Dean a big hug then ushered him towards the house. He ran ahead while she helped Sam and Eileen carry some of their dishes in._ _

__“Sorry we’re late, things were a little chaotic,” Sam apologized hurriedly. Patience turned toward them._ _

__“Don’t worry about it! We haven’t gotten up to much yet, though Gertie and the boys have been so excited for Dean to get here.”_ _

__Sam chuckled fondly, remembering how ecstatic Dean had been when he had told him Sammy and Cas were going to be there. Garth’s twins were six, three years older than Dean, but they all played together like they were the same age, ever since Dean learned how to walk. Someone had once made a joke that it was meant to be, Team Free Will 3.0, but people stopped saying stuff like that after Eileen threatened to break their wrists. Gertie liked to play with them too, but she’d recently hit that awkward age where she’s torn between wanting to sit at the adults table, wanting to prove she can be a good babysitter, and wanting to just run around with her brothers. Luckily that meant she tried to hang out with everyone at family dinners, which all the guests always appreciated._ _

__Upon walking through the door they were greeted by Gertie and the twins running through the foyer, Claire following closely behind to make sure they didn’t break anything. Jody noticed them enter and straightened up, closing the oven door._ _

__“Sam! Eileen! Happy Thanksgiving!” She made her way over to the pair and gave each of them a tight hug. She grabbed Sam by the jaw and looked him in the eyes. “How are you doin’ Sam?”_ _

__He gave her a somewhat forced smile. The five year anniversary of Dean’s death had been just a few days ago, and it had been rough on all of them. Jody sighed and patted his face, then turned around to head back into the kitchen. “Everyone’s in the living room, they’re excited to see y’all. I’ll catch up in a few minutes, I’ve just gotta finish checking this damn turkey.”_ _

__Sam translated this information to Eileen, who was looking at him expectantly. Their friends tried their best, but it was difficult to lipread so many people, sometimes people forgot they had to be looking directly at her to be understood._ _

__They entered the living room and were greeted by a lot of women. And Garth. Bess and Donna were watching the game with rapt attention, while Garth and Kaia sat off to the side, drinking beer and chatting quietly. Patience and Alex were helping in the kitchen, and Sam hoped to God that wherever Claire and the kids were, she was keeping them out of trouble rather than enabling it, but he sincerely doubted it._ _

__Sam cleared his throat and everyone’s eyes turned to them. Then the room erupted in a cacophony of greetings. Donna got up and gave the both of them a bear hug, squeezing the air out of their lungs. Everyone was talking to them at once, and Sam couldn’t even think about trying to help Eileen, because he couldn’t figure out who to focus on. He just tried to say hey to everyone, and Eileen did the same. They all exchanged how are you’s, good to see you’s, it’s been a while’s. It was nice, seeing all of them, but it wasn’t long before he found himself putting a hand on Eileen’s shoulder to get her attention._ _

___‘I’m going to help Jody and the girls. You stay and visit,’ _he signed, getting up. She smiled at him and squeezed his hand, then turned back to the story Donna was telling about the nice young hunter she’d met recently, who had asked her to dinner and a movie, but don’t be goofball Eileen, he wasn’t interested in her! Sam huffed a laugh at Donna’s obliviousness.__ _ _

____“Need a hand?” he asked as he entered the kitchen. Jody looked over at him as she washed a potato, nodding over at the cutting board that was currently occupied by Patience._ _ _ _

____“Sure! How about you take over for Patience over there, she’s been helping me all day long.” She moved out of the way of the sink to let him wash his hands, then went back to the potatoes. Patience gave him a grateful smile as she handed over the knife she was using to chop carrots. They worked in silence for a few minutes, the only conversation coming from Alex telling Sam to get the hell out of the way of the cutlery drawer, which he did hastily, worried about what she would do once she got the knife she wanted from it. After a while though, the overwhelmed feeling that he had been trying to escape before died down, and he felt up for some small talk._ _ _ _

____“So, how have things been over here?” he asked, scooping up the celery pieces and throwing them in a bowl._ _ _ _

____“Well, it’s been a little bit lonely around here with Patience in school and Claire and Kaia out of the nest. I’m just happy to have them home for the holidays.” Jody replied, and Sam nodded, drying his hands on a dish towel. The house had been so busy for so long, but now most of the girls had moved on. “At least I still have Alex, but she’s not home as much, because she got a new job.”_ _ _ _

____“Jody!” Alex squeaked, embarrassed._ _ _ _

____“What?! That’s amazing!” Sam cheered. She had been having trouble finding work after finishing school, and had been waiting for a job to come up for a few months. “Where are you working?”_ _ _ _

____“I got hired as a nurse practitioner here at Sioux Falls General,” she replied nonchalantly, and Sam’s jaw dropped._ _ _ _

____“Alex! That’s incredible! I’m so proud of you.”_ _ _ _

____“Thanks,” she said quietly, blushing at the praise. They quickly finished up the last of the work that needed to be done in the kitchen, and everything was in the oven. All they needed to do was wait. The three of them started to make their way back into the living room, but before they crossed the threshold, Sam caught Jody by the elbow._ _ _ _

____“You did a really good job with them,” he told her. They both watched as Alex sat down on the couch next to Patience, stealing one of the crackers she was holding._ _ _ _

____“I barely did anything,” Jody replied, leaning against the doorframe._ _ _ _

____“You know that’s not true,” Sam scolded, “They’re good kids, but you’re the one that led them down the right path. You gave them the love and acceptance they needed most. You’re a hero Jody. And a good mom.”_ _ _ _

____“Well then,” Jody whispered, taking a sip of her beer. They both ignored the shine of tears in her eyes. “Thank you for bringing them to me.”_ _ _ _

____They stood in silence for a few more moments before Jody cleared her throat._ _ _ _

____“Speaking of good parents, where’s your son?” Sam laughed out loud._ _ _ _

____“Hell if I know.”_ _ _ _

____“Well, find him, and get washed up. We’re goin’ to eat soon.”_ _ _ _

____They went their separate ways, and Sam eventually found Dean in the backyard, covered in mud and showing a worm to Cas. Claire was nearby, trying to get Sammy to stop pulling on her hair. She looked so worn out that he almost felt bad for her, but instead he just laughed at her predicament and helped peel Sammy off of her. He gave her a beer as a form of thanks, which she took gratefully._ _ _ _

____“Cas, Sammy, it’s time for dinner.” At the mention of food, the twins perked up and immediately started running back inside. Dean made no move to get up from his spot in the dirt, tearing out handfuls of grass. “Dean, c’mon bud. Let's go get washed up.” When Dean didn’t answer, Sam crouched down to his level. “What’s wrong dude? You not hungry?” Dean crawled into Sam’s lap, and quietly started playing with the buttons on his dad’s shirt._ _ _ _

____“Daddy?” he asked in a small voice._ _ _ _

____“Yeah Dean?”_ _ _ _

____“There’s only one me.” Sam looked down at his son, confused._ _ _ _

____“What do you mean bud? Of course there’s only one of you.”_ _ _ _

____“I heard Cousin Claire say I’m just like other Dean.” Sam froze. “What does that mean? There’s only on me, right?” Sam swallowed the lump in his throat and rubbed Dean’s back._ _ _ _

____“Yeah, there’s only one you. Don’t worry, I’m not hiding another one somewhere.” Sam told the boy, knowing that was what he was worried about. Dean nodded, and uncurled himself from Sam’s lap, now confident in his own uniqueness._ _ _ _

____“Then who’s other Dean?” he asked, going back to shredding up clumps of grass. Jody was going to kill them. Sam took a shaky breath._ _ _ _

____“Have I ever told you the story of how you got your name?” Sam asked, knowing he hadn’t. Dean shook his head. “Well, before you were born, I had a big brother.”_ _ _ _

____“Like my big brother?”_ _ _ _

____“Kind of, but it was more like how Sammy and Cas are brothers. His name was Dean, just like you,” Dean looked up at Sam, his dark eyes full of curiosity. He looked more like Eileen than he would ever look like Sam. “But he died. Just like how Mr. Water the fish died, remember?” Dean frowned at the mention of his dead goldfish, but looked like he understood. “So we named you after him, because he was really awesome, and we knew you were gonna be really awesome too.”_ _ _ _

____“Oh.” Dean said, then looked contemplative for a moment. “Am I just like other Dean?” Sam sighed._ _ _ _

____“In some ways. Like how cool you are, and how much you love Miracle. But you’re different in a lot of ways too. And that’s a good thing. Because that means you are your own person, and we love that person so, so much. Do you hear me?” Sam took Dean by the shoulders and looked him in the eyes to make sure he understood._ _ _ _

____When it was clear he did, Sam decided the serious moment was over. “Come on, let’s get washed up.” he announced, trying to grab Dean by the midsection._ _ _ _

____“No!! I don’t want to!” Dean giggled, trying to escape his father’s grasp._ _ _ _

____“I guess if you won’t listen to me, you’ll have to listen to… the tickle monster!” Dean squealed with breathless laughter as Sam attacked him, and was quickly begging him to stop. Sam did, and got up, reaching out a hand for Dean to take._ _ _ _

____Together they went inside and washed their hands for dinner. As they entered the dining room, Sam passed Dean onto Eileen, who watched with amused attention as her son excitedly started signing about the bugs he found outside. Garth and Donna finished setting the table, and everyone sat down. Sam started reaching for a roll, but Jody slapped his hand away from across the table._ _ _ _

____“Sam Winchester, I swear!” She scolded, with no real heat behind the words._ _ _ _

____“Sorry Jody!” She shook her head at him, then stood up to address the group._ _ _ _

____“Since this is Thanksgiving, I wanted to be stereotypical for a second and tell all of you just how grateful I am that we have each other, and that everyone could make it up this year. And of course, we should remember that those who couldn’t be here, are here in spirit, and we miss them every day,” Everyone bowed their heads. It was a hunter gathering, after all. They had to acknowledge the ones they lost._ _ _ _

____“We’re all so lucky to be with each other and eat this food together, this food that we slaved over, so you better damn well enjoy it! Dig in.” Everyone cheered as Jody finished her speech and sat back down._ _ _ _

____All of them started loading their plates with delicious smelling food, and the whole room was full of laughter. Sam got Dean some strips of turkey breast, some mashed potatoes, and roasted broccoli, which was the only part of the meal he ate. Eileen had to force him to eat two bites of turkey before he could have desert. There were three kinds of pie, and a dozen chocolate chip cookies that Jody had made specifically for Dean, because Dean didn’t like pie. He never had._ _ _ _

____The night started to die down after desert. Jody recruited Claire and Kaia to help with the dishes, as they hadn’t helped with cooking earlier. The Fitzgeralds headed out first, because the kids all had school tomorrow. The stragglers were all lounging in the living room, trying to recover from the meal. Sam had an arm around Eileen’s shoulder, Dean curled up in between them. Eileen exchanged hunting stories with Donna, but Sam could see her yawning, and he felt about the same. Dean looked like he was going to be out for good if they stayed any longer. He patted her on the back, and she looked at him. He removed his arm from her shoulder and straightened his posture._ _ _ _

_____‘Ready to head home?’ _he asked. She nodded, and they moved to get up. Sam scooped Dean into his arms, and they said their last goodbyes to Donna, Alex, and Patience. They made their way into the kitchen to let Jody and the girls know they were heading out. Kaia waved from her spot on the counter. Claire gave an enthusiastic goodbye to them, and gave Dean a high-five to send him off.__ _ _ _ _

______They grabbed the dishes they had brought along, and their coats to protect against the November chill. Jody followed them out to the front porch._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Bye Jody! Thank you so much for dinner.” Eileen said, and Jody gave her a hug._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Have a nice night Eileen,” she said once they had broken the embrace. Eileen nodded, and turned to Sam._ _ _ _ _ _

_______‘I’ll wait in the car,’ _she signed, and put a hand on his shoulder as a way to tell him to take as long as he needed. Sam nodded, and turned back to say one last goodbye to Jody. Dean was half-asleep in his arms, his head rolling around on Sam’s shoulder.__ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The warm light and far-off clatter of dishes inside poured through the still-open door, fading softly into the quiet night air as calming background noise._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Thanks for havin’ us today Jody,” Sam said quietly, hoisting his son higher up in his arms._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Of course Sam. You know you’re welcome anytime.” She gave Sam a tight one-armed hug and kissed Dean on the top of his head. “You take care of yourself, okay Sam?” Sam smiled._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Always do,” he replied. Jody chuckled._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Uh huh. Dean?” Dean lifted his head to look at Jody, his tiny hand letting go of Sam’s neck to rub at his bleary eyes, “Take care of your daddy for me, will you?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Kay Auntie Jody,” Dean mumbled. Sam grip on him tightened minutely. He sounded like Dean._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Good boy.” Jody whispered, and ruffled his hair. Dean batted her hand away, grumbling. Jody laughed and switched to ruining Sam’s hair, and he made a very indignant noise, which made Dean giggle. They all took a deep breath, inhaling in the scent of the damp grass that surrounded them. “Good night Sam,”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________He nodded, and Jody gave them one last look before turning around and heading back into the house, closing the door behind her. They were left in a gentle silence._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Did you have fun?” Sam asked as they made their way towards the car. Dean nodded against his chest, his thumb in his mouth. They were trying to break him out of that habit, worried about the long term effect on his jaw, but Sam decided to let him be tonight. They leaned against the car door for a moment._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Let’s say goodnight to your brother.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Dean looked up at the moon, then raised his hand to give a small wave._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Night Jack,”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________A breeze came through the trees, the stars seemed to shine a little brighter, and Sam felt every blade of grass reach out to them in recognition. He sighed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Goodnight._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Author's Note:**

> Imagine if your brother was just, God. Wouldn't that be crazy? Anyway, thank you so much for reading, I hope you liked it. I'm in love with Dean Jr. The only stories I can ever finish are parent fics, apparently, so I'll probably write more with him in the future.


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